It is a well-known fact that not being able to see makes evaluation of a subject and subsequent action difficult. We use our eyes to evaluate a situation or an object, orient our actions, and guide the same. Therefore, darkness can be a great inhibition to efficient action. Often it is necessary to evaluate or move in a small and dark area. To counter this possibility, lights have been made to fit within cramped spaces, usually placed on tools used in whatever operation the user desired to perform. Small lighting tools may then be positioned in an area efficiently to illuminate what was once obscured. However, there is a trade-off. When placing a light in an enclosed volume, there is a risk of continued obscurement as the light itself will physically block a portion of the field of view. There is also the risk that the light structure will be in the way of any action required to be taken. Therefore, it is advantageous to not only have a light which presents a small view profile, but also presents little physical impediment to movement in the area. A light that is positionable by the user, therefore, presents an advantage over lights which are statically relocated. Activation of the lights may also prove problematic, especially in medical contexts. A switch, which is by its nature usually a moving part, usually has some small orifice, either where one piece of the switch was, or to where it is moving, where microbes may inhabit and grow.
The present invention is a small light source attachable to a tool for illuminating a small volume into which the tool is positioned. The light source presents a very narrow width, and thus presents a narrow sight profile. It also is very little height to not inhibit movement within a volume. Among these features, the light source has an adhesive backing, so it may be temporarily positioned anywhere convenient on the tool, as determined by the user. The light source is also encased in a soft shell so that it may be used in medical procedures when the shell is of suitable material and a small internal switch is provided so that the shell need not be opened or broken to activate the light.
The present invention represents a departure from the prior art in that the positionable light of the present invention allows for convenient positioning of the light source on the tool being used in a procedure so that it presents a limited impediment to sight and action.